Berkshire-based tour operator Sublime Travel has ceased trading, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has confirmed.
Travel agents with bookings with the operator have been advised by the CAA to not refund their customers until they have received further instructions from the Air Travel Trust.
According to the CAA, the company had an Atol licence for 501 passengers annually, with 158 of these for the quarter to March.
The CAA said: “Sublime Travel Ltd has ceased trading as an Atol holder on January 30, 2023. The company based in Berkshire traded under the name Sublime Travel Ltd and website www.sublimetravel.co.uk
“We are currently collating information from the company and will update this page as soon as possible. Whilst waiting for further information, please do not use claim forms from other failures as these cannot be accepted. If you only booked accommodation with Sublime Travel Ltd, your booking is not Atol protected.”
It added: “If you are a travel agent of Sublime Travel Ltd and you are currently holding consumer payments which you have not yet paid to Sublime Travel Ltd, you are advised not to refund consumers with these funds until you have received instructions from the Air Travel Trust. Travel agents will be individually contacted by the CAA with specific instructions for these bookings.”
In 2020, Sublime took the unusual move of allowing agents to keep 10% of clients’ deposits as an “advance” commission payment during the pandemic. It said the decision was taken to give agents some much-needed cashflow.
The operator specialised in upmarket four and five star holidays, ranging in price from £3,000 up to £500,000. It organised travel for celebrities, musicians and royalty and around 80% of its business at that point came from agents.